


(take my hand) and home we'll go

by ffroyo



Series: In every alternate universe out there, it'll always be you [3]
Category: H.O.T. (Band), SECHSKIES (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, M/M, sorta slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-06
Updated: 2018-07-02
Packaged: 2019-05-02 22:12:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14554623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ffroyo/pseuds/ffroyo
Summary: Tony An finds himself with an unexpected new roommate in his junior year of university.





	1. Chapter 1

“Eh double room?! I clearly indicated for a single room during application.”

“I’m sorry, Tony, but if you want to live in this dormitory, there are only double rooms left, all the single rooms have been taken by seniors. Do you want to change dormitories instead?” The dormitory receptionist stared at him, waiting for an answer.

“Aish, fine, I don’t want to change dormitories. Who is my roommate then? Can I choose?” Tony thinks back to his freshman times, where he roomed with his high school friend Woohyuk for a year. It was definitely fun times, but Woohyuk moved in with his girlfriend in their sophomore year and Tony had gotten used to a single room.

“All roommates are system-assigned. Your new roommate has already moved in, you can see for yourself shortly. He’s a sophomore.”

“A sophomore? Ah that’s okay, I have seniority then. Better than rooming with a senior or even a junior year student.” Tony thought to himself.

Stepping into room 907, he definitely did not expect to see Kim Jaeduck. How did he know Kim Jaeduck? Both of them were part of their respective high school’s soccer teams, and the two teams had a fierce rivalry for the district championships that date back to decades ago. Their rivalry was so intense that the school students once physically brawled during their senior high school year after the referee awarded the victory to Hanlim, Tony’s high school after a contentious foul by Sehwa High School. They had seen each other on the field plenty of times, but never ever spoke a word to each other. His new roommate situation was definitely going to be awkward.

Tony knocked awkwardly on the door to catch Jaeduck’s attention, who seemed busy cleaning up his side of the room. They introduced themselves politely.

 “So, what major are you in? I’m in Business Administration, 3rd year.” Tony tried to fill in the awkward silence that quickly settled over them.

“I’m a 2nd year, majoring in Theatre and Communication studies.”

“You know Eun Jiwon right? You guys were close in high school? When I was in America last semester, he was in a neighbouring university and we met often. He’s a real funny guy.”

“Yea I’m close with Jiwon hyung, haven’t really seen him after he came back though…” Jaeduck trailed off.

Sensing Jaeduck didn’t really want to engage in conversation, Tony turned back to unpacking his own things, letting an awkward silence fall over them. 

- 

“I’m doomed. Just doomed” Jaeduck announces at lunch, with enough flair in his voice to cause Jaijin to look up from his bowl of noodles. “You’ll never guess who is my new roommate.”

“Who?”

“Tony Ahn.”

“Tony Ahn?! You mean Tony Ahn of Hanlim High School?! Of the soccer team?!” Jaijin nearly choked.

“Yes exactly. See, this is what happens when you guys decide to get single rooms or not stay in dorms! Ughhh this is bad. Why me???? What have I done wrong?”

“Wait, hyung, what’s so bad about Tony Ahn? I can’t remember anything about him. He wasn’t exactly the best player on their team.” Suwon was curious. “And you don’t even play soccer now and I heard neither does he. The rivalry doesn’t even matter now.”

“heard from seniors in the dorm that he’s really messy. Like he hates cleaning, his room’s corners are full of dust, he clipped his toenails at the dining table. Once, I heard that a senior went into his room and his soles became black after that! How am I going to live with him?” Jaeduck sighed in despair.

“Plus the rivalry thing doesn’t help. We weren’t exactly polite to the seniors in that team despite being younger.” Jaijin added.

“Oh speaking of impolite, I also heard he’s isn’t exactly the icon of politeness to the seniors. And I’m a year younger than him! How do you think he’ll treat me?!”

“Can’t you move out now?”

“This is the closest and newest dormitory to the Theatre building. Why should I move?”

“Well, good luck to you then. Have fun cleaning for him?” Suwon tried to cheer Jaeduck up as Jaeduck buried his face in hands.  

-

The two roommates barely spoke to each other, only talking when necessary. It helped that they had different timetables, as Tony liked to sleep in and attend afternoon classes, while Jaeduck was an early riser and had dance practice at night.  However, after just 2 weeks of living with Tony, Jaeduck had almost reached his limit.

Although Tony rarely intruded into Jaeduck’s space, his own space was a mess. Clothes were strewn about everywhere, on the floor, on the chair, while there was even unwashed bowls and plates left on his desk for days. Jaeduck tried to ignore the mess, he really did, but seeing a cockroach scuttle across from Tony’s side of the room to his was too much.

“YAH! Tony!”

“What, what?” Tony took out his headphones irritably.

“Can you put in some effort in cleaning your side of the room, please. I just saw a freaking cockroach emerge from your side and crawl to mine!”

“If it crawled to your side, doesn’t it mean yours is dirty too?” He tried cracking a joke to defuse the tension, but it clearly didn’t work as Jaeduck continued to glare at him.

“Also!! It’s our room’s turn to clean the common bathroom on our floor. Let’s clean it after you’re done cleaning your side of the room. And hurry up, I have dance practice tonight.”

“Fine, fine.” Tony stood and surveyed his mess. He really _really_ hated cleaning, and when he lived in by himself he would often hire someone to clean for him occasionally. But seeing he’s living with a roommate, he was out of that option.

-

“So, how do you clean the bathroom?”

“You mean you have never cleaned the common bathroom before?”

“The previous dormitory I lived in had bathroom cleaners I think? A different type of dorm?” Tony smiled sheepishly at Jaeduck.

“Take off your pants.”

“What?!”

“What, you want water to splash onto your pants?” Jaeduck had already stripped down to his underwear and stared at Tony expectantly.

“Uh…alright then.”

In their underwear, the two of them started to scrub the floors and silence once again fell over them.

“Jaeduck, do you dislike me or something?”

“What? What…what you talking about?” Jaeduck stammered, thankful that they didn’t have to look at each other then.

“We are roommates but today was the most we ever talked. Is the past rivalry between our soccer teams bothering you or something?”

“Honestly, it doesn’t bother me but it’s just a little awkward…And you are way too messy!! It won’t kill you to tidy up a bit.” Jaeduck finally looked at Tony and grinned.

“Ah ok, ok I’ll clean once a week, you can even nag me about it if I don’t.” Tony smiled back, relieved that some of their initial awkwardness was gone

On a spur, he suggested “Hey, you doing anything for lunch tomorrow? Let’s eat together. My treat.”

“Ok, I’m free after my morning class. Ooh I really like buttered steak!”

They went back to scrubbing the floor, but the initial tension that hung over them previously was gone.

-

The next day, their lunch went surprisingly well. They found they shared a love for Star Wars and quickly agreed to a Star Wars marathon over the weekend. Tony realised that Jaeduck liked to comment on the movie as it went along, but while Tony preferred a quieter movie viewing experience, Jaeduck’s comments were pretty funny, and his eyes crinkling into a line whenever he laughed was kinda of adorable.

Jaeduck also had the habit of touching him when he laughs at particularly funny scenes. It’s not like Tony minded, as Jaeduck was usually touchy around everyone he was close to, but Tony couldn’t shake the tingling feeling whenever Jaeduck’s touches lingered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if it's really boring TT please give some feedback if you find it boring haha  
> It's going to be chaptered but definitely less than 5.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry the update took so long, but I do really suck at chaptered fics :(

When Tony came back from his 2pm class, he walked into Jaeduck frantically packing his clothes into a small carrier bag.

“Jaeduck, what’s happening? Where are you going?”

“My parents….my dad…mom…my parents just got into a really bad car accident. My dad is hurt but he’s stable. My mom’s in critical condition. I gotta go…I gotta get to Busan ASAP.” The words came out in a rush.

“Ah ok. I’ll drive you to the train station? Airport? Are you taking the KTX or plane?”

“Plane? I want to get there as soon as possible.”

“You booked a ticket yet?”

“…no”

“I’ll check for you. Ah…the next available flight to Busan is….tomorrow afternoon.”

“I can’t…I can’t wait that long.” Jaeduck’s voice cracked “Train?”

“Ok. KTX. The next available train is…today evening 9pm.”

“That means I’ll arrive at midnight? Omg…” Jaeduck turned abruptly away from Tony, with his voice cracking at the end.

“I’ll drive you, Jaeduck.” Those words came out abruptly and Jaeduck stared at him. “I mean, tomorrow is Saturday anyway, I have nothing on. If I drive, you can at least get there in max 4 hours.”

“Really, hyung? It’s really tiring to drive to Busan by yourself. I don’t think I can help in this state…”

“No, no, you don’t have to drive at all. Really, I don’t mind, I mean this is a really important matter. C’mon, let’s go.”

Throughout the car ride, Jaeduck was really anxious and fidgety. He alternated between staring blankly out of the window or staring at his phone, as if willing an update from his family.

“You should try and get some sleep. It might be a long night at the hospital.”

“How can I sleep?? I’m so anxious I could die.”

2 hours into the journey, Jaeduck got a call that his mother was out of the first stabilising surgery and she’s waiting to go into the second round of surgery.

 “So, is her condition stable?”

“My uncle said it is for know, but the second surgery is quite risky. How….” His voice trailed off and his face scrunched up tightly.

“I can’t tell you it’s gonna be okay, but for now you just gotta hope for best.” Tony reached out and patted Jaeduck reassuringly on the thigh.

Fortunately, the traffic was little and they arrived at Pusan National University Hospital in the early evening.

They rushed to the waiting room outside the surgical theatre and Jaeduck immediately gripped tightly onto the arms of his uncle.

“How’s mum? How’s dad? I feel like I’m going crazy.”

“Your dad is resting fine, don’t worry. Your mum just went in for the second round of surgery. It may take several hours, so there’s nothing to do but wait.”

“Can I see Dad right now?”

“He’s sleeping right now, but I think you can go take a look if you want. Your sister is there right now.”

As Jaeduck followed a nurse to see his father, the uncle noticed Tony standing around awkwardly.

“You are…?”

“I’m Tony, Jaeduck’s roommate. I drove him here.”

“Oh he did mention that he was coming by car since there are no trains or planes available. I’m his uncle, Mr Lee.”

“Is Mrs Kim gonna be alright?”

“It’s hard to say.” Mr Lee sighed deeply. “They said the risk is high, but it was the only option. So, are you going back to Seoul soon then?”

“I think I’m just gonna accompany Jaeduck, idk? I’ll go back tomorrow night and drive Jaeduck as well if he wants to go back.”

Soon, Jaeduck came back from his dad’s resting ward together with his younger sister.

“Hyeonmi, why don’t you go home? You’re too young to overnight at the hospital.” Jaeduck chided his sister.

“How can I go home when I don’t even know if Mum is ok? I’ll go crazy waiting for news at home. Please, let me stay.”

“Uncle, what do you say?

“If she really wants to, we can’t force her to go home. Anyway, Tony, could I ask you for a favour? Since we’re gonna be here for a few hours, my wife has prepared dinner, a change of clothes for me and Hyeonmi. Could you pick it up? I would do so myself but I have to be here in case something happens.”

“Sure, sure no problem. Just give me the address.”

When Tony was back, Hyeonmi had already dozed off in a corner, while Jaeduck had his gaze trained on the floor.

“How are you feeling?”

“I just, I…I feel numb. Like my feelings shut down. I can’t bear to feel anything y’know. What if…Oh god I can’t even imagine it.” Tony can hear the tears choking up in Jaeduck’s voice, and for the first time that day, Jaeduck broke down into tears. Tony doesn’t think twice about wrapping Jaeduck into his arms, feeling Jaeduck’s tears quickly seeping through his shirt.

“Your mum is gonna be alright, Jaeduck-ah. She will be.” Tony soothed Jaeduck, gently patting him on the back.

-

Sitting against the cold plastic chairs and waiting into late hours of the night, almost everyone dozed off but Tony. Draping a jacket around Jaeduck, he noticed Jaeduck’s head bending at uncomfortable angle. Tony adjusted himself beside Jaeduck, and gently nudged him.

Jaeduck’s head gradually dropped against Tony’s shoulder.

The doctor’s voice woke them all up.

“Mrs Kim’s condition is stable. You can see her as soon as she wakes up from her general anaesthesia, which should be in early morning.”

“Oh thank god.” Jaeduck’s head dropped, trying to hide his tears of relief. Tony watched as the family members hugged each other tightly, feeling a great sense of relief as well.

It was more waiting, but finally Mrs Kim woke up early morning. The whole family went into the hospital ward while Tony waited outside.

The next 2 days went by in a blur, with Tony driving Jaeduck and his sister back home and all 3 of them crashing out until late afternoon. Tony then drove both of them to the hospital again, and stayed till visitor hours were over. On Sunday, Tony wanted to drive Jaeduck to the hospital again, but Jaeduck insisted Tony rest more and return to Seoul soon in time for Monday. Tony protested but Jaeduck was really scary when he was determined, so Tony drove back to Seoul by himself on the 2nd day.

Jaeduck came back to school on Tuesday night, heading straight for his bed. Tony looked over from his desk in concern, noting the exhaustion etched on Jaeduck’s face. He turned back to his laptop.

“Tony hyung?” Jaeduck’s voice was heard, muffled by the pillow and laced with sleep.

“Hmm? What is it, Jaeduck-ah?”

“Thank you, hyung, for everything. We weren’t even that close but…what you’ve done. I really can’t thank you enough. Thank you for all you did. You didn’t even have to do any of those…”

“Oh…oh any friend would have done that, Jaeduck. It was a hard time for you, I’m glad I could be there for you. You’re…you’re special to me.” Tony stammered the last part, softly and slowly turned back to look at Jaeduck, but Jaeduck was already in deep sleep.

-

It was winter break and the dorms were closed. Both Tony and Jaeduck had to stay in Seoul for school activities, Tony for extra winter classes, while Jaeduck had to prepare for his upcoming dance concert.  Jaeduck moved in with Suwon temporarily as his girlfriend went home for the break, while Tony bunked with his junior from Business, Chilhyun.

“Hyung, wanna order jajangmyeon for lunch today?” Suwon asked Jaeduck.

“Sorry, Suwon, I’m meeting Tony hyung for lunch today.”

“Again?! Didn’t you eat dinner with him yesterday?”

“Ah hyung said he was so used to seeing me every day, that he suggested having at least lunch or dinner together a few times a week during the break, since we are both in Seoul anyway.”

“You guys…are…way too overly attached to each other.”

“It’s not like that!! We are just comfortable with each other.”

“You saying you’re not comfortable with me, hyung?”

“No, no. Aish I got no time to explain, I gotta go.”

“Ah hyung! You could at least asked me along!” Suwon shouted after Jaeduck, but he was already out of the door.

_Meanwhile, at the same time at Chilhyun’s house_

“Hyung, I’m cooking pasta for lunch, you want some?” Chilhyun shouted across the kitchen to Tony, who was currently lazing on the sofa.

“Ah it’s lunch time already?! I gotta go. None for me, thanks, I’m meeting Jaeduck for lunch.”

“Again?! Didn’t you eat dinner with him yesterday and lunch the day before?”

“Ah I got so used to seeing him every day, so I asked him if he wants to have lunch or dinner together a few times a week during the break, since we are both in Seoul anyway.”

“You guys are weird!” Chilhyun burst out laughing. “Who sees each other that often except dating couples? You saw him 3 times already this week right?”

“4 times, actually.” Tony scratched his head sheepishly. “Ah but it’s not like that. We are just close, that’s all. It’s nice to talk to him often.”

“Ah it would be unimaginable in high school. Hanlim’s Tony Ahn and Sehwa’s Kim Jaeduck, being close friends and roommates.”

“Ah stop bringing up the past! It made our relationship so awkward at first. Thank goodness we are close now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know nothing about hospital scenes, I'm sorry. Anything I actually have snippets of the whole story written but I keep getting stuck at the details of certain scenes argh.
> 
> Any comments would be really really helpful and I'll be eternally grateful~


	3. Chapter 3

The new semester starts again, with Tony and Jaeduck moving back into their dorm room. Jaeduck became busier than ever with his concert coming up in a month, practices after practices taking up all his time.  Tony almost always wakes up to an empty bed on the left side of the room, and falls asleep with the left bed remaining empty. Jaeduck sneaks into the room in the wee hours of the morning, afraid of waking Tony up.

Still, Jaeduck still tries to take care of Tony, knowing full well that the elder will start subsisting on a diet of convenience store bentos and instant ramyun without any reminder. Tony finds post-its reminding him to eat proper meals and sometimes even meals prepped for him, the accompanying sticky note claiming that ‘I accidentally had prepped extra for myself, so please have some hyung!’ or that his mum had sent him extra side dishes and Tony _had_ to eat them before they went bad.

-

Over lunch, Jiwon asked if Tony was going to Jaeduck’s dance concert. Tony gaped at Jiwon, realising that Jaeduck had never really asked him and he had never asked Jaeduck about going either.

When he told Jiwon that, Jiwon burst out laughing, “Why are you even waiting for him to ask, this isn’t a date or something. Just buy a ticket and go with us.”

“Us?”

“Yea, me Sunghoon Jiyong and Suwon, obviously. Jaijin is dancing too.”

-

Later, Tony sent a text to Jaeduck.

T: Jaeduck, when is your concert again?

J: It’s this Friday night, why?

T: Can I come?

J: What? What kind of question is that, hyung. You’re funny!! I’ll get you a ticket.

-

On the day of the concert, Tony showed up at the university’s concert hall, feeling inexplicably nervous. He scanned through the programme brochure, and found out that Jaeduck was not only a choreographer for one dance together with Jaijin, he was part of a special dance segment.

“Wow, he’s doing a lot for a sophomore.” Tony pointed it out to Jiwon.

“Yup, he’s pretty talented despite only picking it up in university.”

The concert begun shortly and Jaeduck and Jaijin’s dance was the 2nd one. It was a hip-hop dance filled with plenty of slick moves, strong beats and lots of energy. Tony watched in rapt attention, eyes naturally focusing on Jaeduck.

The special dance segment came right in the middle of the concert. The lights shone red and Jaeduck emerged from the stage in a tank top and jacket. When Jaeduck started his routine, Tony felt as though he was sucked into a vortex. He could see, and only see, Jaeduck dancing, the hip swaying, the body waves, the chest popping.

Tony could almost hear the wind roaring in his ears, his heart pounding getting louder and louder.

Jaeduck struck a pose, the spotlight shining on him, and the light went out, signalling the end of the segment. It felt as though a veil had been lifted on him. Tony stood up abruptly, and mumbled to Jiwon “Sorry, it’s an emergency, but I gotta go. Tell Jaeduck I thought he did amazing.” Before Jiwon could ask why, Tony scooted out of his seat and out of the theatre.

-

“Congrats Jaeduck!!! You did amazing!!” Jaeduck emerged from the crowds to the cheers of his friends in front of the concert hall. Quickly, he surrounded by his friends, giving him hugs and high-fives.

“Wait, where is Tony hyung? He said he was going with you guys.” Jaeduck looks around.

“He came, but he left really quickly after you finished your part. Said he had to rush off for something. He said to tell you that you did great! That solo dance, wow!”

Jaeduck smiles, poses numerous photos with his friends and his dancers, with his arms full of flowers, chocolates and gifts. But he somehow misses one very important hyung, wanting to receive his congratulations and compliments in person.

-

Tony sits on a bench in a nearby garden, staring blankly into space. He felt he was going crazy, with a million thoughts rushing through his mind, but at the same time, a single thought really standing out, as if shouting at him.

_I’m in love with Jaeduck._

Tony knew he liked Jaeduck, after all, they had gotten really close in such a short period of time, but he always thought his feelings were just platonic. He didn’t think he was actually _in love_.

But he was. He missed Jaeduck like crazy, even though they were living in the same room. He didn’t think he would fall in love with the way Jaeduck nags him to sleep earlier, or when Jaeduck hits him repeatedly on the thigh when they watch Running Man together, or when Jaeduck secretly prepares healthier food for him, or when Jaeduck tries to sneak a pack of his health supplements but gets caught and whines ‘hyungggggggg’ at him; the list could go on, really.

Tony realises that he was deeper in this than he originally thought.

-

“Chilhyun, are you home? Can I come over?” Tony speaks the moment he hears the line being picked up.

“Hello to you too hyung. I just ended class, walking home now. What happened? You sound really panicky.”

“I’ll tell you when I see you. I’m waiting in the lobby.” Tony hung up, letting out a deep sigh.

 “Aren’t you supposed to be Jaeduck’s concert now?” That was the first thing Chilhyun said to him after sitting themselves down on the sofa.

“Smart. This is related.”

“So?”

“Get me some soju, Chilhyun-ah. I need a drink first.”

Letting out another big sigh after a shot of soju, Tony confessed. “I’m in love with Jaeduck.” He stares straight at the ground, not daring to see how Chilhyun reacted.

“…Is that it?”

Swerving his head around quickly, Tony looked at Chilhyun in disbelief. “What do you mean is that it??? I just bared my soul to you, Chilhyun.”

“You mean you didn’t know you liked Jaeduck? Hyung, everyone knows you like Jaeduck. I thought only Jaeduck didn’t know.” Chilhyun shook his head at Tony, who looked completely lost, while trying to restrain himself from laughing.

“Who knew we had another clueless person here, ah you two are made for each other.” Chilhyun blurts out, and immediately realises he shouldn’t have said that. Luckily, Tony was too flustered in his distress to notice.

“What do you mean everyone!!! Who??”

“Well, all of Jaeduck’s friends know.”

“All? How do you even know that?”

“ALL, hyung. I forget I know Sunghoon? That guy talks once you get a few drinks in him. How are you so clueless about your own feelings?! I think there may be even a bet going on about when are you gonna confess.”

“Well excuse me for never liking a guy before!!! I was so distressed over this, I sat alone on a park bench for an hour before coming here, trying to sort out my feelings.” Tony runs his hair through his hair

“The question is how could you not know you liked him. During the holidays, when Jaeduck went back to Busan for 3 days, you sent him a text saying ‘I missed you so much. How are you doing? How’s life? When are you coming back? It has been too long’ with like 10 crying emojis. It was only 3 days, hyung.”

“Honestly, that felt like 10 days to me. And I wasn’t in the room much the day before, so it was like 4 days?”

“Listen to yourself, hyung.” Chilhyun tried hard to stop himself from laughing too hard, he was going to get hiccups at this rate. “4 days and you missed him so much.”

“That’s beside the point!! How am I gonna face him now? I don’t even know if Jaeduck likes guys.” 

“You guys never talked about your dating history?”

“I think I boasted about my ex-girlfriends when I was drunk? Jaeduck told me that…but he never talked about himself before, I’m sure.”

“Well, you just gotta take a chance. If you never try, you’ll never know.” Chilhyun encourages Tony, but Tony simply stares blankly ahead, seemingly to not have heard those words.

While talking, they had unknowingly finished almost 8 bottles of soju between the two of them. Tony falls into deep asleep on the sofa. Chilhyun smiles down at his clueless and _very much in love_ hyung, “Just confess, hyung. I really think Jaeduck likes you too”, he whispers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm clearly not a dancer orz I know nothing about it. I'm hoping to finish this fic by the end of july! Any comments are really appreciated~


End file.
